While panning absentmindedly through one of my dad’s farm/tools/random-outdoorsy catalogs, I saw something that really caught my eye: a cagelight that apparently was intended for use in a barn, but looked like it belonged in a mad scientist’s lab. It looked something like this:

I immediately decided I needed to make my own version of the cagelight for use as an epic decoration for my mad-sciencey desk. I used some thick wire, LEDs and other electronics, 3D printed parts, and lots of hot glue. It turned out to look like this:

This project consisted of two main parts: making a custom PCB to control the light, and designing an authentic cagelight enclosure. I ended up designing and 3D printing a custom case and using heavy gauge wire to make the cage. Below is what it looks like lit up. It’s quite bright. Basically, a battery powers some white LEDs and some flashing red LEDs which can be switched on and off.